Curious about # of times your ST has been down.

[emshaferii]

As a newbie, I was curious about the # of times folks have had their bike down in the first 2 years of ownership.

[Allen]

Big wind. BIG BIG wind. Parked it with the kick stand up wind. What was I thinking? Big gust, klunk. New mirror, turn signal, engine guard cover, saddle bag.

Stupid mistake on my part.

[Medicine Bear]

Four times - once when I first got it, once in a sloped parking lot, and twice in 3 minutes one day when I was really pissed off from work and needed to go riding. My wife, who helped pick up the double drop, almost wouldn't let me on it until I calmed down.

Fred :03biker:

[Elmo]

I've only been an ST owner for 4 months and it has not been down... yet.

In my 30+ years of riding, I've only had one bike to go down and that was my '01 Valkyrie a couple of years ago... and get this... it was on my carport! :o:

As they say, it's not a matter of if, but when...

Elmo

[Blrfl]

I refuse to answer the question on the grounds that it may cause my ST to go down.

--Mark

[mayner]

Never <knock knock knock>

Come close a time or two, getting used to the weight of the bike. After a while I've gotten used to the porky beast. ;-)

[Gonzo]

Had to let it down easy in my driveway one time, very slight roughing on the left tip over wing, nothing else.
Gonzo

[jnsgardner]

Here, and I thought he meant 'down for service'...:-)

John

[PanAmerican]

If a bike falls in the driveway and nobody except you sees it, does it count?

My name is Mike and I have dropped my ST1300.

I am an experienced rider. I have skills. I've been riding since I was 14 and had many a motorcycle in my day. Even so, the ST is a heavy bike, and no matter how light it may feel under way, it can be a handful at very slow speeds until you get used to it.

I'm somewhat embarrassed to say I've dropped mine a total of 3 times in the year I've had it. All within the first 3 months and all at <1 mph. Praise be to Honda for those tip over wings! Only damage (other than to my ego) was to the wing cover. After the 3rd time, I sprung approx. $15 for a new one.

Learn from me:

1. Straddle the seat when pushing your ST off its center stand. You and your back aren't strong enough to keep her up once she starts leaning away from you.
2. Do not apply your front brake suddenly while executing a tight radius turn at very slow speeds. Damn, I knew that!
3. When you roll up to a stop, watch out for gravel, potholes, oil, or anything else that might cause you to lose your footing and balance. This can catch you off guard if you're not careful.

Luckily, because of this site, I'd already read how easy it is to pick up the ST solo, using the "grab the front brake, place your butt against the seat, push with your legs" technique. I'm sure you can find those directions here yourself if you don't already know how to do it. If there's ever a DropSTOC, I could probably teach a course on it (using your bike of course).

Hope nobody's looking next time though... Have you ever seen a face the color of an '05 ST1300? :o: